the brief
The client came to Bruce with an idea. They wanted to provide a new streaming platform for smaller production houses, something the independent movie makers could use as an alternative to cinema, Netflix and Amazon Prime. Being a bunch of movie boffins ourselves, we ran with this idea and built it out into a unique proposition.
Our research told us that there’s something crucial missing from streaming. Customers miss the feeling that comes with planning a night out to the movies with a friend or loved one. Streaming users love the millions of titles at their fingertips, but often suffer from choice paralysis.
Our solution? To transform Cineburg’s platform into an event-driven streaming experience. One that allowed users to interact with their friends even if they weren’t in the same location.
At the time, the idea of “watch parties” didn’t exist. Since then shared streaming experiences have started to creep into the market among the big players. Bruce and Cineburg were ahead of the curve on this one.
Image: Wireframes are blueprints for an experience, created quickly and crudely, to test out design ideas and perfect the interface
the experience
The Cineburg proposition drives a feeling of ‘special occasion’ with its fixed-time events. Customers can arrange for a group of friends to all tune in at the same time and enjoy something together. Having something to look forward to, an event this weekend or a midweek movie, is a real USP for Cineburg in the movie streaming world.
With all the anticipation of a cinema visit in place, we turned our attention to the experience itself. Movie lovers want to be able to talk about the film, their interpretation, their theory, their review. We tapped into existing mental models of social chats and merged them into a streaming environment. Customers can chat with their friends in private or with everyone in the cinema and even react to the stream in real time.
New movies are called ‘premiers’. They are scheduled at fixed times similar to a cinema. Once they have run for a few weeks, they move into a more typical on-demand service.
Image: Cineburg’s polished UI adds to the overall experience
brand & ui
The client came to us with a budget and a desire to break into independent movie streaming – we did the rest. We brainstormed lots of names before the client settled on their own suggestion. We produced a wide range of visual routes and worked with the client to merge, refine and carefully finalise a creative identity.
The brand uses a bold colour alongside premium understated dark visuals, giving prominence to the content itself. We wanted to evoke the luxury feeling of a high-end cinema while avoiding any clichés.
Our research told us that users really hate the lack of information on streaming platforms, where they have to make a movie decision based on a two sentence synopsis. We flipped this so every movie page felt like a poster or promotion, with trailers, cast information, reviews etc. We used movie visuals and data enrichment from other movie websites to create a true representation of the film, unique for every title.
the finished result
In the end, we managed to create a unique streaming platform for Cineburg, grounded in real user needs and expectations. Our in-depth user research helped us to build a visionary experience, with streaming parties soon adopted across the industry. But it was our attention-to-detail, and the care and craft we took to etching out an unforgettable streaming experience that made Cineburg one of our most exciting projects so far.
So, shall we begin?
If you have an idea, product or brand that you want to take to the next level, talk to Bruce. We work with lots of entrepreneurs and start-ups to prepare them to go to market.